
Class _. 
Book_. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



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^^3 



Durt;;am Jou/^sl^ip. 



HERBERT C. BELL. 

ASSISTED BY 

CHARLES LAUBACH and B. F. FACKENTHAL, JR. 



PHILADELPHIA: 

A. WARNER & CO. 
1887. 



Copyright, 18n7, by A. Warnek & Co, 



DURHAM TOWNSHIP. 



IN the extreme northeastern part of Bucks county, a nearly rectangular area 
about ten square miles in extent is inclosed between Northampton county 
and the Delaware river on the north and east, and Nockamixon and Springfield 
on the south and west, differing widely from the surrounding country in the 
nature of its resources, the circumstances of its settlement, and the character- 
istics of its population. It is a region of great natural beauty. Durham creek 
flows through the valley of this name, which is about two miles in breadth, 
bounded on either side by high hills, the ascent of which is sufficiently gradual 
to permit cultivation almost to their summits. From the highest point of one 
of these elevations the observer beholds a scene spread out before him which 
rivals the most famous landscapes in this country. The protecting convolutions 
of South mountain form the northeastern horizon; while spurs of every variety 
of contour, elevation, and direction radiate from the primary range. The 
Delaware sweeps into view at a point to the north, gradually widening in its 
approach until it becomes the broad expanse of water immediately beneath the 
observer's gaze. Fallowing its course to the southeast, it describes a bold, 
semicircular curve, entering the " Narrows" beneath the shadows of over- 
hanging and perpetual foliage. These rocks of new red sandstone rise in per- 
pendicular bluffs about three hundred feet above the level of the river, compar- 
ing favorably in height with the famous " Palisades" of the Hudson. 

There are evidences of the existence of the prehistoric man in these cliffs 
that line the Delaware. It does not require any great effort of the imagination 
to conceive of a rounded stone having been used as a hammer, a sharply pointed 
one as the point of an arrow or a spear ; a cave may have been a habitation, 
and the loose fragments of its rocky sides the implements and weapons of 
primeval man. The progress of his rude civilization through the successive 
periods of the stone, bronze, andiron ages can be as clearly traced in the cabi- 
net of the archaeologist as the political development of the races that have 
succeeded him from the records of the historic page. The fretpient discovery 
of Indian relics suggests the occupation of the Indian race. The location of 
1 



several towns in Durham has been accurately determined by the presence of 
these silent but interesting relics of former generations. 

The site of an extensive village has been traced from the Riegelsville Dela- 
ware bridge southward as far as the Durham iron-works, and inland a distance 
of a half-mile with the course of Durham creek. The remains of earthen fire- 
places, pottery, and stone implements were quite numerous a half-century 
since, but have steadily disappeared under the frequent drafts of relic-hunters. 
This town existed in 1727 under the name of Pechoqueolin, at which time it 
was presided over by a chieftain, who bore the euphonious name of Gachga- 
watchqua. He was accountable for the deeds and misdeeds of his people to the 
Lenni Lenapes, and held the land by a tenure which bore some resemblance to 
the feudal system of the middle ages. His people were Shawanese. They 
were a brave, active, turbulent, and warlike people. They seem to have been 
comfortably established here. 

About a mile west from the principal town, on an elevated plateau, was an 
opening in the forest about seven acres in extent, still remembered by the older 
citizens. It is remarkably free from the loose stones scattered promiscuously 
over the surrounding fields. It is supposed that this was an Indian corn-field. 
In support of this theory it may be stated that the soil within well-defined 
limits had apparently been exhausted by years of cultivation before the arrival 
of the German farmer who first applied the plow, and endured the disappointment 
of ill-requited toil. To the west of this about two miles, on the second spur of 
the South mountain and overlooking Fry's run, there is another traditional 
Indian field. Its area is about five acres, and it was completely circumscribed 
by a dense forest until 1875. About the center stood a solitary tulip-tree, 
fully five feet in diameter. Numerous little mounds or ridges everywhei-e 
mark the effects of cultivation by the Indians. These mounds have been ob- 
served throughout the west, and are seen in the corn-fields of the Indians to- 
day, where the plow has not superseded the use of his simple implements. 

The ostensible occasion of their residence at Pechoqueolin is explained 
by James Logan, who states in one of his letters that, upon their arrival 
from the south, " they were placed by the Delawares at such places where 
there was something to watch over." One band was sent to Wyoming to 
guard the supposed silver mines there ; another was stationed in the Minisinks 
near Stroudsburg to guard the copper ore ; and a third division was intrusted 
with the protection of the iron of Durham. This was in 1G98. It has been 
inferred from this that the existence of iron ore here was certainly known at 
this time ; and it seems probable that the mining of ore had been begun 
equally early, but such supposition is purely a matter of conjecture. It had 
already enlisted in its development the efforts of a powerful London syndicate, 
" The Free Society of Traders." The powers and privileges conferred by 
Penn upon this remarkable corporation were most unique. It was organized 



J 



in March, 1682, with Nicholas Moore as president, and received a grant of 
twenty thousand acres of land, which Avere to constitute " The Manor of Franks." 
Oflficers of the province were restrained from interfering with its affairs. Taxes 
were to be assessed and collected within the manor by such process as its 
officers should direct. It was stipulated in behalf of the proprietary that the 
society should establish factories, transport tradesmen and artificers, manumit 
slaves after fourteen years' service, and signify their allegiance to him by the 
payment of one shilling annually upon the day of the vernal equinox. 

Five thousand acres of the grant of 1682 were surveyed at some time 
before the close of that century, and located under the name of Durham, com- 
prising the whole of the township of that name and a considerable area in 
Northampton county. The seating of a tract of land fifty miles distant from 
any important settlements when it could have been procured in the vicinity 
of Philadelphia at equal cost, and possessing the advantages of greater fer- 
tility and accessibility, proves conclusively that the mineral resources of the 
region were already known. One hundred men were to be sent to Durham ; 
but there is no evidence in regard to the carrying out of this plan. In a 
metrical composition entitled "A Short Description of Pennsylvania," which 
appeared in 1792, the author, Richard Frame, states " that at a certain place 
about some forty pounds of iron had been made." No particulars as to 
where, or how, or by whom this was done are given. In the history of New 
Albion, published in 1648, allusion is made to the existence of lead in the hills 
some distance above the falls of Delaware. The Indians early learned the 
nature and value of that metal. It is possible that their information on the 
subject induced investigation and led to the discovery of iron. And thus in 
the wealth of the mineral resources of its hills is found the explanation of the 
comparatively early settlement of Durham. 

The recorded history of the furnaces dates from the year 1727. On March 
4th of that year a stock company was formed for the purpose of working iron, 
by Jeremiah Langhorne, Anthony Morris, James Logan, Charles Reed, Robert 
Ellis, George Fitzwater, Clement Plumstead, William Allen, Andrew Bradford, 
John Hopkins, Thomas Linsley, Joseph Turner, Griffith Owen, and Samuel 
Powell. These persons had succeeded to the interests of the Free Society of 
Traders, who derived their title from the Indians direct before their right had 
been extinguished by formal purchase of the constituted authorities. An act 
of assembly was passed in 1700 declaring void all subsequent private purchases. 
The fact that Teedyuscung acknowledged this purchase and the title of the 
society to their land proves that it must have been acquired before that time. 
If any iron was made by them, it must have been in blomaries, as no furnace 
was in existence at the time of the formation of the new company in 1727. 
The first furnace of which anything authentic is known was put in operation 
in that year. It occupied the site of the mills of R. K. Bachman & Bro. on 



the Durham creek about one mile and a half from its mouth, and in the center 
of a rich metalliferous deposit. It is said to have been between thirty-five and 
fort}' feet square and about thirty feet high. The casting-house was built of 
Btone, facing toward the west. Upon the site of Bachman & Bro.'s store was 
the stamping-mill, a building in which the cinders were crushed and the iron 
that had been wasted with the slag Avas separated from it. In digging the 
foundation for the grist-mill, the workmen encountered a huge lump of iron 
(" salamander") of about six to eight tons in weight, which had evidently 
escaped from the furnace through the hearthstones. All endeavors to remove 
it proving futile, they were at length compelled to dig a pit at the side and 
thus lower it out of their way. The water-power of the creek was utilized in 
various ways, principally in operating a number of forges and in working an 
enormous bellows that produced the blast. The dam was situated about a 
mile farther up the creek, and the timbers constituting the dam in the bed of 
the stream are still sound and may remain so for another century. The course 
of the race can still be plainly trgiced. There were three forges along the 
creek, all below the furnace. The uppermost was situated about a half mile 
distant from it, where the foundations are still distinguishable, and the cinders 
and delris were screened about forty years ago. The middle or second 
forge was located about the same distance farther east, and its foundations can 
also be traced. Tlie third, of which every vestige has been obliterated, occu- 
pied a site near the present furnace. In addition to these, numerous forges 
elsewhere were also supplied, among which were those located at Mount Pleas- 
ant, in Berks county ; Chelsea, on the Musconetcong creek, one mile north- 
east of Riegelsville, New Jersey ; Change water, near Washington, N. J. ; 
on the same stream in Warren county. New Jersey, ten miles east of Belvi- 
dere ; Greenwich, near Chelsea ; Green Lane, on the Perkiomen, in Montgomery 
county. 

Another industry already associated with the furnaces was the burning of 
charcoal. The improved methods now in vogue had not then been introduced. 
That it was an important industry may be inferred from the number of pits of 
which the remains may yet be seen in the valleys of the Durham and Musconet- 
cong. In those early times, when the howling of the wolves broke the stillness 
of the forest, and the red man was the frequent visitor of his white neighbor, 
the occupation was interesting and adventurous as well as lonely and danger- 
ous. The method usually employed consisted in selecting a location easy of 
access and sheltered from the prevailing winds ; the site chosen was carefully 
levelled and a stake was driven into the ground with a height of a foot or more 
above the surface, around which a quantity of small wood to ignite the pile was 
placed until it attained a radius of two or three feet from the stake. Horizontal 
layers were added to this to the height of nine or ten feet, thus forming an 
opening for a chimney. Outside of this and inclining inwards the material of 



the pit was placed in vertical layers until it attained the required size. The 
whole of the exterior surface was then covered with turf. While in process of 
burning or charring the pit required constant attention during a period ranging 
from seven to ten daj's. The process reduced it to about half its original size. 
The charcoal was then hauled to the furnace in wagons drawn by four and six 
horses. Such, in brief, was one of Durham's " lost arts." 

The manufacture of stoves may be classed in the same category. As far 
as known, the earliest effort to dispense with the open fire-place, once univer- 
sally in use, and to substitute an appliance similar to the common stove, was 
made in 1678 by Prince Rupert of England. It was he who first demonstrated 
the feasibility of applying heat through the medium of a radiating surface. 
The most important improvement upon this was made by Dr. Benjamin Frank- 
lin. The following instructions, written by himself, were given to those who 
should use his stove : " To use it, let the first fire be made after eight o'clock 
in the morning or after eight o'clock in the evening, for at those times there is 
usually a draft up a chimney, though it has long been without a fire ; but be- 
tween these hours in the day there is often in a cold chimney a draft downward, 
when, if you attempt to kindle a fire, the smoke will come into the room ; but 
to be certain of your time, hold at the top of the base over the air-hole a piece of 
lighted paper. If the flame draws strongly down, the fire may be lighted." 
Franklin perfected his invention in 1745. The published account of it gives 
abundant and conclusive reasons why those previously in use should be aban- 
doned in its favor. It does not appear whether the Durham proprietors secured 
the right to manufacture it or not, but from 1745 to 1791 a stove combining its 
advantages with such improvements as expei'ience proved necessary was manu- 
factured by them to an extent sufficient to give the works a wide reputation. 
The Franklin stove sold at the furnace for four pounds ten shillings. The 
Philadelphia stove, a contemporary innovation, was disposed of at the rate of 
eighteen pounds per ton, the price varying with the cost of the material of 
which it was made. In 1790 a Mr. Pettibone, of Philadelphia, patented a 
heating apparatus for use in churches, halls, hospitals, and similar large rooms. 
It is not probable that many of these were made at Durham, as the furnace 
blew out the following year. The earliest pattern of a stove known to have 
been made here was called the " Adam and Eve," from the character of the 
embellishments on its side. The date, 1741, is inscribed in raised characters, 
and in the background appears a representation of Adam, Eve, the serpent, 
several animals and trees well executed and in good artistic taste. The Back- 
house pattern, so known from the proprietor of the works during the revolution, 
was the most popular among those who used it. It combined the fixtures of a 
heating, baking, and cooking stove. The most superbly finished pattern was 
that made by George Taylor, who had an elaborate model constructed with the 
inscription, " Durham Furnace, 1774," that being the year in which he assumed 



6 

control of the works the second time. A portion of a stove bearing this inscrip- 
tion was to be seen for many years in front of the post-office at Easton in a con- 
spicuous position. A noticeable peculiarity in connection with this branch of 
the iron business is the fact that shipments were always made by land and 
never by boats, when the consignment was to Philadelphia. It required a 
full week for a team of four or six horses to make the journey to the city and 
return. And yet, under a combination of unfavorable circumstances such as 
this, the requirements of the age were fully met as far as Durham stoves 
were concerned. The machinery that could thus be adapted to the peaceful 
pursuits of the people could be used with equal success in furthering their 
efforts when at war. The shipments of shot and shell during the month of 
November, 1780, when the revolution was drawing to a close, amounted to 
upwards of two tons, and the price was twenty-five pounds per ton ; the total 
value of shipments during the year was one thousand and seventy-six pounds 
one shilling two and one-half pence. In the following year, the different con- 
signments of shot and shell for the continental army aggregated in value one 
thousand nine hundred and eighty-two pounds eight shillings eight and one-half 
pence. The product throughout the war was correspondingly large. A large 
proportion of the shot "were three and nine pounders, but double-headed shot 
were also cast and shipped. The shell weighed from twenty to sixty or more 
pounds apiece. In 1782, August 12th to 17th inclusive, twelve thousand three 
hundred and fifty-seven solid shot, ranging in weight from one ounce to nine 
pounds, were shipped to Philadelphia. Mementoes of this stormy period are 
yet to be found in the cabinets of persons interested in local history. 

The course of events during this period was marked by important changes in 
the ownership, management, and control of the furnaces. The copartnership 
of 1727, although originally intended to continue fifty-one years, was dissolved 
by mutual consent some time before the expiration of that period. To facili- 
tate a division of the property, the eight thousand five hundred and eleven 
acres one hundred perches composing it were divided into forty-four tracts 
of varying size ; and in the allotment which followed, tracts numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 
7, and 33, embracing the site of the furnace and forges, and the principal 
sources of ore, became the property of Joseph Galloway and Grace his wife, 
and was confirmed to them in a deed of partition executed December 2'4th, 1773, 
to which are affixed the names of the Galloways, Abel James, John Thompson, 
trustees of Thomas Nickleson, and Elizabeth his wife ; Joseph Morris, and Han- 
nah his wife ; the Honorable James Hamilton, Cornelia Smith, relict of George 
Smith, and James Morgan, an iron-master. Joseph Galloway thus became 
the first individual proprietor of Durham Furnace. 

He was born in Maryland in 1730, of respectable parentage, but removed 
to Philadelphia in early life, and engaged in the study and practice of law, but 
after marrying Grace Growden, the daughter of Lawrence Growden, proprie- 



tor of Trcvose, he made the hatter place his residence. He was a man of fine 
talents, but lacked strength of character. During the earlier troubles with Great 
Britain, he was prominently, and probably sincerely, identified with the interests 
of his native country. But when misfortunes and reverses appeared upon the 
American political horizon, he proved unworthy of the cause he had espoused, 
joined the British at New York, and became the persistent defender of the crown. 
By act of assembly of March 6th, 1778, he was required to surrender himself 
under pain of being attainted of high treason. lie deemed it advisable for 
his personal safety not to comply with the mandates of the law, and was ac- 
cordingly attainted, and his estates declared forfeited to the commonwealth. 
Richard Backhouse succeeded to the title thus vested in the State authorities, 
but his possession was of short duration. Legal complications ensued, the 
heirs-at-law of Galloway protesting that his property had been acquired by 
marriage, and was not therefore subject to seizure as the penalty of treason, as 
his wife had not shared his political views. The courts decided adversely to 
Backhouse,* whose heirs were dispossessed in 1799, when Elizabeth (Galloway) 
Roberts succeeded to the possession of the property. Her daughter, Grace 
Ann (Roberts) Burton, was the next owner of the furnaces. She died in 
1837, when her son, Adolphus William Desart Burton, became proprietor 
under his mother's will. He was the last descendant of the Growdens in 
whom the title to their ancestral estates was vested. 

During this time the management and operation of the works were princi- 
pally intrusted to lessees or superintendents. The James Morgan, " iron- 
master," and owner of a sixteenth interest in the works, prior to the partition 
sale of 1773, was one of the latter class. The son. General Daniel Morgan, 
rose to distinction as a revolutionary soldier. He was born in Durham town- 
ship in the winter of 1736, and has justly been given the place of honor as 
the most distinguished of her citizens. In early life he assisted his father in the 
multitudinous duties of his position. He began his military career as the driver 
of a baggage-wagon in the disastrous expedition of 1755 against Foi't Duquesne, 
having run away from his home two years previously. The following year he 
held an ensign's commission, and endangered his life on several occasions while 
the bearer of important despatches. In one instance, when accompanied by 
two companions, both were killed by an Indian ambuscade, while he escaped 
with a wound in his cheek, and the loss of several teeth. At the close of the 
seven years' war he married, and engaged in agricultural pursuits in Clark 
county, Va., where he remained until the outbreak of the revolution, when he 
recruited the famous brigade known as "Morgan's Riflemen," from among the 

* This case, Jenks vs. Backhouse's Heirs, is reported in 1 Binney, 97 ; it was argued in 
the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in June, 1798, and again December 7, 1798, and was de- 
cided December 23, 1799. 



8 

backvroodsraen of A^irginia and western Maryland. Their achievements at 
Stillwater and Cowpens have received merited praise from the most competent 
military critics. But the exposure and privations of repeated campaigns at 
length affected the iron constitution of their gallant commander. He returned 
to his home upon the cessation of hostilities, was elected to congress, but re- 
signed before the expiration of his term. He died at Manchester, Virginia, 
July 6, 1802, at the age of sixty-seven years. 

A scarcely less distinguished personage, whose connection with the furnace 
was still more intimate, was George Taylor, a signer of the declaration of inde- 
pendence. He was born in 1716, the son of an Irish clergyman, who designed to 
educate him for the medical profession. His nature was not adapted to the pur- 
suit of a calling requiring such assiduous attention, and he deserted his studies 
at the earliest opportunity, taking ship for America as a redemptioner. Arriv- 
ing at Philadelphia, he indentured himself to Mr. Savage, the lessee of the 
Durham works at that time, who paid the expenses incurred on his voyage. He 
accompanied Mr. Savage to Durham, there to redeem the money thus advanced 
by labor scarcely as pleasant as studying medicine. He was employed for some 
time as a " filler," but, giving evidences of intelligence and ability, was pro- 
moted to the position of clerk, and eventually became a member of the firm. 
Upon the death of his employer, in 1738, he married his widow, and became 
sole lessee of the Durham iron works. He again assumed control from 1774 
to 1779, during the ownership of Galloway. He amassed a considerable for- 
tune, and was interested in industrial pursuits of a varied character at other 
places. He early manifested an interest in provincial politics. He represented 
Northampton county in the assembly for the first time in 1765, and again on 
several occasions. In 1763 he was appointed treasurer of a board of trustees 
which superintended the erection of a court-house at Easton. In June, 1766, 
he was one of a committee which drew up the remonstrance against the " Stamp 
Act." He was a member of the continental congress of 1776, and in that 
capacity signed his name to the declaration of independence. The following 
year he was active and energetic in urging the legislature of Pennsylvania to 
provide for its defense against threatened invasion. In March, 1777, he retired 
from public life. His death occurred February 23, 1781. One of the most 
prominent objects in the Easton cemetery is a graceful shaft of Italian marble, 
the pedestal of which bears the arms of the state of Pennsylvania, wliile the 
American flag, draped in crape, is suspended at the top. It was dedicated to 
the memory of George Taylor November 20, 1855, with proper civic and 
military observances. The work is both significant and appropriate. It 
recalls the worth and public services of a useful citizen and an unswerving 
patriot. 

The construction and appearance of the furnaces changed with much less 
frequency than their proprietors. Tradition asserts that iron was made at 



Durham long before the works of 1727 were erected ; and if this be true, it 
may safely be assumed that the blomary or stuckofen was in use for this pur- 
pose. The process of smelting was attended with ranch difficulty (owing to 
the crude process thus employed) and without the knowledge of chemistry. 
The operation was frecjuently repeated several times, in order to secure a prod- 
uct free from cinder and other foreign substances. In the transition from the 
primitive machinery at first used to modern appliances, the first step was in- 
creased height in the blomary. One of the two blomaries in operation in 
1750 was probably erected on this principle. It was about ten feet higli, with 
an opening about two feet square in front and another tiiree feet in diameter 
on top. The former was not closed until the blast had been applied, when the 
charcoal and ore were thrown in at the same time. The product w^as a mass 
of conglomerate iron and steel, malleable, and yet more fibrous and dense than 
is usually produced at more modern furnaces. The annual product of a 
blomary of this character was about one hundred and fifty tons. The weekly 
capacity of the regular furnace was twenty-five tons. The furnace of 1727 was 
in operation from that year until 1791, with occasional intervals of suspension 
from various causes. The following extract from Richard Backhouse's journal 
shows some of these causes during his administration : 

" Tuesday, May 30. 1780 ; at eleven o'clock in the morning, Durham Fur- 
naces began to blow. July 18, Tuesday, at | after three o'clock, blew out — 
blew seven weeks. September 1, 1780 ; Friday night, at half after ten 
o'clock, began to blow. November 15, Wednesday morning, at ten o'clock, 
blew out — blew ten weeks and five days. Sunday morning. May 18, 1781, 
at 10 o'clock Durham Furnace began to blow. June 18, Monday morning, 
stopt up for want of coals occasioned by the excessive floods of rain. June 
25, Monday morning, began again to fill with mine, etc. 27, Wednesday 
morning about 7 o'clock, the mine came down. July 17, Tuesday at 8 
o'clock in the morning, blew out. June 9, 1782, Sunday morning at 4 
o'clock, began to blow. December IG, 1782, at four o'clock in the afternoon, 
the furnace blew partly off, and then finished by heaving off the rest, as the 
wheel froze fast — blew 6 mo. 1 week. Put fire in the furnace on Thursday, 
May 15, 1783, about three o'clock in the afternoon ; put on mine Saturday 
about 12 o'clock at night ; blowed on Tuesday morning, 20th, about <') o'clock ; 
made the first casting on Wednesday the 21st, about 7 o'clock in the evening ; 
the average amount of Pig Iron per week was 18 tons." 

But Mr. Backhouse, although his business transactions were characterized 
by thoroughness and precision, had nevertheless been injudicious in purchasing 
Durham from the commissioner of confiscated estates. The legal proceedings 
instituted against him in 1791 resulted unfavorably to his interests two years 
later, and although the action of the state authorities in conve^'ing the property 
to him was then set aside, it does not appear that he was ever reimbursed, save 



10 

in the miserable pittance of four hundred and fifteen dollars appropriated by the 
legislature in 1808 for expenses incurred in defending his title. But with his 
nominal possession and active management the active operation of the works 
also ceased in 1791. Immense piles of bomb-shells and solid shot were re- 
moved from the premises in 1806, and the deserted buildings were then allowed 
to decay, having outlived several generations of those who had been sheltered 
in their daily toil by their walls. The furnace was not then suffered to die a 
natural death (if it may be thus personified); it was removed in 1819, when 
the grist-mill that marks its site was erected. A stone having date " 1727" 
was preserved from the accumulated rubbish, and was an object of interest at 
the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876; it now occupies a conspicuous 
corner in the office of the iron-works. Adolphus William Desart Burton disposed 
of the property in 1847 at public sale, consisting of eight hundred and ninety- 
four acres divided into several farms, to Joseph Whitaker & Co. Deed dated 
March 16, 1848, when possession was given for fifty thousand dollars. They 
built two new furnaces adapted for the use of anthracite fuel on the site of the 
present one in 1848-50, and thus, after the lapse of more than one-half a cen- 
tury, the sounds of peaceful industry were again echoed and re-echoed from the 
Durham hills. Hon. Edward Cooper (son of Peter Cooper), and Hon. Abram 
S. Hewitt, of New York city, purchased the works from Joseph Whitaker & 
Co., in 1864, for one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, but disposed of them the 
following year to Lewis Lillie & Son of Troy, New York. The plant was en- 
larged and improved by the latter and adapted to the manufacture of Lillie's 
chilled iron safes on an extensive scale. Failing to meet their obligations to 
Messrs. Cooper & Hewitt, the property reverted to the latter in 1870, and the 
manufacture of safes was then abandoned ; they continued, however, to operate 
the two blast furnaces until 1874, when they were demolished and the erection 
of one large furnace commenced which was first put in blast February 21, 1876. 
The two furnaces erected in 1848 and 1850 were 40 feet high. One was 
13 feet and the other 14 feet in diameter. They were afterward en- 
larged to 48 and 50 feet high by 15 and 16 feet internal diameter respectively ; 
they were built of stone and lined with fire-bricks in the usual way, had open 
tops, and were equipped with iron pipe stoves or ovens for heating the blast. 
It is estimated that the entire output of these two furnaces from the time of 
their erection was 178,000 gross tons of pig-iron, with an average weekly out- 
put during the actual time in blast of 100 gross tons for each furnace. It 
required about two tons coal, two tons three cwt. of ore, and seventeen cwt. of 
limestone to produce one ton of pig-iron. The total stock consumed by these 
furnaces can therefore be estimated as follows : — 

356,000 tons coal, 

382,700 " ore, 

151,300 " limestone. 



V 



/ 

I 

Coal was brought to Durham on boats from Mauch Chunk through the 
Lehigh and Delaware Division canals ; the limestone was quarried from the 
property. Tlie ore mixture contained about sixty per cent, of primitive ore 
from the Durham mines and forty per cent, of brown hematite, part of which 
was also mined from the Durham furnace tract and the balance from other 
mines in the neighborhood of Durham. 

The present furnace, completed- in 1876, is 19 feet diameter or bosh by 75 
feet high. It is built of sheet-iron supported by heavy cast-iron columns. It 
has a closed top and is equipped with six hot-blast ovens which were designed 
by Hon. Edward Cooper. This particular form of oven, first in use at these 
works, is very economical, and has been adopted by many other furnaces 
throughout the country. Blast is supplied by two upright blowing engines of 
4 feet stroke with 44 inch steam cylinders and 84-inch blowing cylinders. Each 
engine therefore blows 308 cubic feet of air per revolution.* In the present 
practice they are run to their capacity, 30 revolutions, and deliver 18,472 cubic 
feet of air per minute. The boilers are of the ordinary cylindrical type of fur- 
nace-boilers, 24 in number, 12 steam-boilers 36 inches diameter by 60 feet 
long, and 12 mud-boilers 30 inches diameter by 40 feet long. The plant 
further consists of pump-house, foundry, and machine shops, blacksmith sliops, 
wood-working shops, saddler shop, office, laboratory, and other necessary build- 
ings. The employees number 350 men and boys. Some of the men employed 
in the erection of the furnace in 1848 have worked continuously here ever 
since. 

The present furnace was put in blast February 21, 1876, and up to Febru- 
ary, 1882, divided into four blasts, produced 99,992| gross tons of pig-iron, 
being a weekly average of 388 tons during the actual time in blast. The fifth 
blast, lasting 151 weeks, commenced April 1, 1882, and produced 90,450 gross 
tons, or a weekly average of nearly 600 tons. The sixth blast commenced 
July 1, 1885, and up to July 1, 1887, had produced 66,779 gross tons, or a 
weekly average of over 642 tons. At present writing the furnace is still run- 
ning successfully in her sixth blast. The coal required during the fifth and 
sixth blasts is a little less than 1 ton 4 cwt. per ton of pig-iron. The output 
in one month has reached 3,135 tons, in one week 752 tons, in one day 129 
tons, while the lowest weekly fuel consumption is one ton per ton of pig-iron. 

Since 1876 the Duriiam mines have produced about 34 per cent, of the ores 
used in the mixture. 11 per cent, was brown hematite from Durham and Spring- 
field townships, and from Williams township, Northampton Co. The remaining 
55 per cent, of the mixture was from properties belonging to Messrs. Cooper 
and Hewitt, situated in Morris and Passaic counties. New Jersey ; but when 

* This could be compared to the blowing machines used at the old furnaces, 17'27-1791, 
when bellows operated by water-power were used. 



12 

making iron suitable for Bessemer steel large quantities of ore are imported 
from Elba, Spain, Africa, and many Mediterranean ports. To bring this ore 
and other material necessary to supply a plant with the increased production, 
it was found necessary in 1876 to build a ferry across the Delaware in order 
to get connection with the Belvidere Division of the Pennsylvania railroad ; 
tracks were put down on both sides of the river and the cars carried over into 
the works without transferring ; the ferry-boat, 20 feet wide by 80 feet long, is 
operated in the usual old-fashioned way by the current of the stream, and a 
stationary wire-cable. The cars are run on the boat over an iron truss bridge 
30 feet long, which is lifted from and lowered on the boat by cranes erected for 
that purpose, one end being hinged to the dock, thus making a continuous 
track. It requires two locomotives to deliver the cars to and from the boat, one 
on each side of the river. The entire output of pig-iron is taken across and 
shipped in this way. When the river is in favorable condition the capacity of 
the ferry is about 500 tons daily, or 250 tons in each direction. 

No small part of the operation of a blast furnace is the handling of the 
slag or cinder. At Durham this amounts to 100 tons every 24 hours. It is 
run into cast-iron cars and carried away over a narrow-gauge track by means 
of a narrow-gauge locomotive. All the available space around the furnace and 
around the river front having been filled, the present dump is on the northeast 
end of Rattlesnake hill. 

As we have already shown, the mining of ore probably commenced as early 
as 1698, and that in 1727 ore was regularly mined to supply the blast furnaces 
Avhich continued in operation with the usual interruptions until 1791 ; it is 
probable that the ore mined from the Durham hills during this time aggregated 
150,000 tons. The entire quantity furnished by the Durham mines up to the 
present time would therefore approximate 550,000. This, however, does not 
include the brown hematite mined from the furnace tract or from other prop- 
erties in Durham. 

The ore from the Durham hills is primitive and not magnetic ; it is found on 
two hills, one called " Rattlesnake," situated nearest the furnace and about 
1500 yards from the Delaware river, the other, called " Mine hill," situated 
further to the west, extending beyond but south of the village of Durham 
where the original furnace was located. The mining operations of 1727-1791 
were evidently confined to " Mine hill." In 1846 this entire hill was leased to 
the Glendon Iron Company, which worked it in connection with their adjoining 
tract. Their lease expired in 1848, when Joseph Whitaker & Co. took posses- 
sion ; when the mine was reopened after having been idle for more than fifty 
years, some of the timbers were sound and some old tools were found. This 
opening was known as " old tunnel;" it started on the western end of the hill 
running northeast, and was the principal source of ore supply for some years ; a 
shaft was put down intersecting this " old tunnel," and the ore worked out at 
a depth of 250 feet, being 70 feet below the level of the old tunnel. 



18 

The Glendon Iron Company continued to work their own mines (shipping 
the ore by canal to their furnaces at Glendon, Pa.) until 1857, when they 
abandoned them ; in 187') their property on Mine iiill known as the " Glendon 
lot" was purchased by Messrs. Cooper and Hewitt, and thus again became part 
of the Durham furnace tract. 

In 1859 a tunnel was commenced on the north side of Mine hill, near the 
Creek level, running southwest. This is known as the " new tunnel," and was 
intended not only to drain the " old tunnel mines," and make the exj)eusive 
machinery for ipumping and hoisting no longer necessary, but also to cut the 
shoot of ore at a greater depth ; and further to fully test the ground on the north 
side of the hill several small shoots of ore were intersected, but they were not 
arge enough to justify working. Work was not carried on regularly, and it was 
not until 1871 that the old workings were reached, the new tunnel having 
attained a length of 2000 feet. Since then drifts have been run in every direc- 
tion, and considerable ore mined. In 1858 an opening was first made on the 
south end of Mine hill, the ore outcropped on the surface, and the mine was 
therefore called " surface mine." Work at this point was suspended in 1862, 
and resumed in the fall of 1878, when a slope or inclined plane 200 feet long was 
sunk. This led to the discovery of a new shoot of ore, which was 30 feet wide 
at the largest place, and richer in iron than the old surface ore. The shoot was 
500 feet long, and had a maximum height of 40 feet. There are two other 
shoots of ore at this place, one 75 feet to the south, which was 300 feet long 
and at places 12 feet wide. The other shoot is 100 feet to the north, outcrop- 
ping at the surface, has a maximum width of 18 feet, and is 350 feet long. Since 
re-opening this mine in 1878, it has been the principal source of supply from the 
Durham hills. There are several other openings on this hill, from which small 
quantities of ore are mined. 

Operations on Rattlesnake hill commenced in 1851 on top and near the 
center of the hill. The ore outcropped and was worked as an open cut. In 
1853 a tunnel was commenced on the north side of the hill near this open cut 
some 200 feet above the Creek level. At this place two " veins" of ore were 
intersected, the first one called "Rattlesnake vein," the other overlying vein 
called " Back or South vein." The general strike of the ore is northeast and 
southwest, pitching southeast and dipping south. A slope from the end of the 
tunnel was put down on the " Rattlesnake vein," following the dip of the ore. 
At intervals of 50 and 100 feet levels were made and the ore stopped out. At 
present there are five levels, and the slope or incline is 350 feet long. 

In 1854 a tunnel, called " Hollow tunnel," was put into the eastern end of 
the hill, about eight feet above the Creek level, and a larger quantity of ore 
produced at a cost of 90 cents per ton delivered at the furnace. The pocket of 
ore having been worked out, this tunnel was abandoned in 18G2, but in the fall 
of 1878 operations at this point were resumed by the driving of another tunnel 



14 

about 75 feet farther to the south. This is also called " Hollow tunnel.' 
After drifting some 500 feet the " Back or South vein" was intersected, and 
the vein followed on its course some 500 feet more. The ore varies in thickness 
from six inches to ten feet. A cross-cut running north was then started at a 
point 500 feet from the mouth of the tunnel (where the " Back vein" was first 
cut), and after drifting 175 feet the " Rattlesnake vein" was intersected, and 
the tunnel of 1854-1862 explored ; it was found to be five feet lower than the 
present " Hollow tunnel," and running on the course of " Rattlesnake vein." 
This course was then followed, and work pushed vigorously to connect with 
Rattlesnake mine. At the same time the lower level in Rattlesnake mine 
was continued going east. The connection was made September 8, 1885, at a 
point about 500 feet from where the vein was first intersected, being 1000 feet 
from the mouth of the " Hollow tunnel." The drift in the bottom of Rattlesnake 
mine was 500 feet from the slope where the connection was made, and was 50 
feet above the Hollow tunnel. At the point where the connection was made 
the vein is 12 feet thick, and the ore richer in iron than any other ore on the 
Durham property. The Rattlesnake vein varies in width from two feet to 50 
feet, with an average width of ten feet. There are several openings in Back 
or South vein on the eastern end of the hill, which consists of shafts, small 
tunnels, and open cuts. In 1872 considerable ore was mined under contract 
from one of the surface openings. 

The principal brown hematite opening on the Durham tract, or in Durham 
township, was the " Orchard mine," on the northeastern end of Rattlesnake 
hill, 800 feet north of the Hollow tunnel. Operations here commenced as early 
as 1849, and continued for some years until the mine was exhausted. In 1876 
the mine was re-opened, but no appreciable quantity of ore taken out. The 
primitive ore from the Durham hills is quite low in phosphorus and sulphur, 
and contains no other objectionable impurities. Comparatively speaking, they are 
not rich in iron, but are admirably adapted to mix with other ores, and produce 
a mill iron of unusual strength. They are also suitable chemically for making 
pig-iron for Bessemer steel, and are at present being used largely in the 
mixture for that purpose. Analyses of the Durham ores are shown by the fol- 
lowinji table : — 



15 





MINE HILL. 


RATTLESNAKE HILL. 










Rattlesnake 


Back ok 




Old Tunnel. 


New Tunnel. 


Surface. 


Mine. 


South Veins. 




Average of 


Avcraee of 


Analysis 


Averacre of 






2 analyses, in 


3 analyses, 


made in 


2 analyses, 


Made In 1881. 




18fi9 and 1870. 


1875, 1880, 1885. 


1885. 


1881 and 1885. 




Oxide of iron 


74.27 


56.72 


66.73 


71.66 


66.37 


Silic-a .... 


20.39 


35.84 


30.45 


24.80 


32.82 


Lime. .... 




.47 


.07 


.16 


.08 


Maiitiesia . . . 


4.27 


1.22 


.17 


.82 


Traces. 


Alumina . . . 




3.33 


.96 


2.22 


.61 


Phosphoric acid . 


.117 


.07 


.06 


.096 


Traces. 


Sulpliuric acid 


.lyo 


.35 


.32 


.260 


.01 


Combined water . 




1.64 


1.15 


1.00 




Total . . . 


99.237 


99.64 


99.81 


100.756 


99.89 


Metallic iron . 


53.630 


41.02 


47.15 


51.51 


48.02 


Phosphorus . . 


.050 


.034 


.026 


.042 


Traces. 


Sulphur . . . 


.076 


.140 


.127 


.105 


.004 



Settlement in Durham followed the discovery and development of its min- 
eral resources. Europeans were living within the limits of this township as 
early as 1723, and th6ir settlement was the outpost of civilization along the 
Delaware at that time. It seems probable that immigration thither began some 
years earlier, but of this there is no conclusive evidence. The English element 
predominated for some years, and until farming began to receive some atten- 
tion. While the first settlers arrived by way of the Delaware, the Germans 
who followed reached Durham valley through Springfield and from Williams 
and Allen townships on the north. And thus, while the agricultural pursuits 
of the township are almost exclusively in the hands of persons of Teutonic de- 
scent, the population at the furnace has always been made up mostly of English, 
Scotch, and Irish. It does not appear that the corporate ownership of the 
land encouraged immigration ; and hence it was not until after the partition of 
1773 that the population had increased sufficiently to warrant the erection of 
this township. Eiforts had been made much earlier than this, however, and it 
seems probable that the Durham tract was recognized as a municipal division 
long before its organization as such. Constables and justices of the peace for 
this section were appointed by the court as early as 1738. The agitation for 
local government culminated in the northern part of Bucks county iu 1743, 
when Springfield was erected, and like action may have been taken with regard 
to Durham but for the conflicting wishes of its people, some of whom desired 
to be annexed to it, while others, including the furnace proprietors, petitioned 
for separate municipal privileges. June 13, 1775, a petition with this latter 



16 

end in view, signed by Jacob Clymer, Henry Houpt, George Taylor, George 
Heinline, Wendell Shank, Thomas Craig, Michael Deemer, "William Abbott, 
and others, was presented to the court, and the importunity of the agitators was 
at length successful. Durham township was erected with metes and bounds 
identical Avith its present limits and an area of five thousand seven hundred and 
nineteen acres. It is the smallest township in the county with a single excep- 
tion, but one of the most important in wealth and resources. 

The roads first opened in Durham were characterized by a general con- 
vergence toward the furnace. The " Durham road," one of the principal 
thoroughfares of the county, was so named from the northern terminus, toward 
which it was slowly completed for nearly three-quarters of a century. It was 
begun in 1693 and -completed from Bristol to Newtown. With successive ad- 
ditions at irregular intervals, it was extended to Durham in 1745 and to Easton 
ten years later. Roads had also been opened westward to intersect the Beth- 
lehem road prior to 1755. In 1767, the court was petitioned to disregard ap- 
plications for any more roads, as there were enough already. The river con- 
tinued to be a most important highway. Durham boats were quite as well 
known as Durham stoves. These boats were about twenty feet in length, and 
manned by five men, one of whom was at the helm, while two with stout poles 
in their hands stood at each side and propelled the craft by pushing against 
the bottom of the stream. When moving d,gainst the current, it was possible 
to progress at the rate of twenty-five miles a day. It is said that the first 
boats were built on the river bank, near the cave, by one Robert Durham, from 
whom the name was derived. They were found to be remarkably well adapted 
to river navigation, and were extensively used until canals rendered them un- 
necessary. 

In every part of the world and at every period in its history, population 
has concentrated under well-defined laws, to which Durham has not been any 
exception. Its villages, Durham, Monroe, and Riegelsville, have become such 
because of the advantages of their geographical situation, the energy and per- 
sistence of their founders, or the industrial enterprises which attend and sustain 
their population. Riegelsville may be said to combine these conditions of 
healthful expansion. It is the most northern village in the county, twenty 
miles from Doylestown, and ten from Easton, situated upon an alluvial deposit, 
which was formerly an island in the Delaware river. At a period anterior to 
its settlement by Europeans, it was the site of an Indian village known as 
Pechoqueolin. Upon the partition of the furnace lands in 1773, it was included 
in tracts numbers 82 and 33. The latter embraced one hundred and ninety- 
three and one-half acres, and became the property of Joseph Galloway, from 
whom it passed successively to Joseph Morris, Thomas Long, Michael Boyer, 
Abraham Edinger, Jacob Uhler, John Leidy, and Benjamin Riegel. Plot 
number 32, south of the main street of the town, came into possession of James 



17 

Hamilton, who disposed of it to Wendell Sliank in 1774. Either through im- 
providence or because of unfavorable surroundings the Shanks suffered greatly 
during the first years of their residence here. It is related that they were 
compelled to feed the thatched roof of the barn to famishing cattle during two 
consecutive winters. Their house was situated near the river bank, upon the 
site of Abraham Boyer's residence. They were fche first proprietors of the 
Riegelsville ferry. The only neighbor near enough to be called such was 
Jacob Moser, who kept a cake and beer shop for the accommodation of ferry 
hands. Three Shank brothers lived at the ferry which bore their name. 
Practically the growth of the town began in 1814, when Benjamin Riegc-1 
(farmer) erected the large stone barn still standing. The stone house was built in 
1820 ; and in 1830 Benjamin Riegel (miller) located upon the -plot number 
33, which he bad purchased from John Leidy the same year. In 1832 he erected 
a brick mansion occupied at this time by Mr. W. F. Adams. About this time 
he first began to see the advantages of the place as the location for a town ; 
and on the 15th day of January, 1834, by his direction, Michael Fackenthall 
surveyed twenty-four building lots, twelve of which fronted on the canal, and 
an equal number on the Easton road. Among the first purchasers of these lots 
were W. H. Townsend, Thomas Brotzman, Daniel Landa, and Benjamin 
Walters. 

The opening of the canal in 1832 gave an impetus to mercantile and 
industrial pursuits. The first store was opened in the year previous (1831) 
by Messrs. Jesse Heany and Jacob Leaver, and a second in 1832 by Messrs. 
Heany and Riegel. In 1831 the village comprised this first store, a tavern, 
and these dwellings. The tavern was kept by Benjamin Riegel (farmer), who 
applied for license soon after completing his commodious dwelling in 1820. 
He erected the large hotel building at the river bridge in 1837 or 1838. Isaac 
H. Bush was landlord here from 1841 to 1848. John Dickson was proprietor 
from 1851 to 1868, David Walters from 1868 to 1871, and Joseph Rensimer 
from 1871 to the present time. In 1841 Tobias Worman removed from Tinicum 
and engaged in merchandising here, and in 1845 he was appointed first postmaster 
by President Polk. He was succeeded in 1848 by Benjamin Riegel, but the 
latter retained him as deputy, so that the change was merely nominal. Mr. 
Worman continued as the incumbent of the office until 1859, a period of twenty- 
four years. Frederick M. Grouse succeeded him in that year, but was re- 
moved in favor of G. W. Fackenthall under the present national administration. 
Riegelsville became a money-order office in 1879. Prior to 1869 there was 
but one daily mail ; but about that time a tri-weekly service was established 
between Quakertown and Riegelsville, which, in 1878, was merged into a daily 
mail. There are also direct overland mail communications with Doylestown, 
and numerous daily arrivals of mails from points on the Belviderc Delaware 
railroad. The Riegelsville post-office has always been in honest, capable, and 
2 



18 

energetic management, and in an existence of forty-two years has become the 
most important post-village in this section of the county. 

Besides numerous local roads (the first of which was opened in 1815 or 
1816) and the canal, the village is connected with Riegelsville, New Jersey, 
on the Belvidere Delaware railroad, by a substantial wooden bridge, and enjoys 
many advantages from that line of traffic. The ferry flats had long been in- 
adequate for the constant stream of travel before the project of building a 
bridge assumed tangible form. A company was formed in 1837 with Hon. 
William Long president, and Benjamin Riegel secretary. The structure first 
erected was swept away in the great freshet of January 8, 1841, and the present 
one erected. In 1850 Riegelsville comprised one store, one tavern, and eleven 
dwellings. A draft of the village in that year locates the residences of Benjamin 
Riegel, farmer ; Benjamin Riegel, miller ; Anna Bush, John Clymer, C. W. 
Fancher, Tobias Worman, Samuel Dilgard, John Boyer, Hannah Riegel, Peter 
Uhler, and William B. Smith. The site of Clark & Cooley's hardware store 
was then occupied and for a long time previously by a limekiln. The building 
area was greatly increased in 1877 by the sale of several tiers of lots south 
and west of the town from land formerly owned by Mr. Abraham Boyer. The 
present population approximates five hundred. The principal industrial estab- 
lishment is the carriage manufactory of Mr. W. P. Helms, which has been in 
successful operation since 1875. Religious and educational interests are well 
represented. A number of secret and benevolent societies are also sustained. 

Peace and Union Lodge, No. 456, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was 
instituted September 11, 1851, with Michael Uhler, N. G.; Christian Hager, 
V. G. ; Christopher Wykoff, secretary ; Samuel Dilgard, assistant secretary ; 
and Smith Clark, treasurer. A large hall built in 1861 belongs to this asso- 
ciation. 

Colonel Samuel Croasdale Post, No. 256, Grand Army of the Republic, 
was organized June 14, 1882, with the following members: Frederick Crouse, 
Solomon Wolfinger, L. Quintus Stout, G. W. Fackenthall, Andrew J. Crouse, 
Samuel Shaffer, William W. Clark, Edward Renseimer, Jacob E. Saylor, 
Robert Brodt,M. S. Maguire, Henry Warford,C. E. Hager, John Y. Bougher, 
Joseph Leister, Aaron Miller, Isaac M. Smith, Edward Deemer, Jeremiah 
Transue, Christian Bratzman, Adam Bigley, William H. Crouse, Franklin 
Lehr, William Marsteller, William S. Mettler, William Taylor, and S. D. 
Bigley. Among the other valued contributions to the Post is a portrait of 
Colonel Croasdale, executed by Miss Elizabeth Croasdale, his sister, and a 
former superintendent of the Philadelphia School of Design. 

Fraternal Council, No. 158, Order of United American Mechanics, was 
chartered April 26th, 1858. First officers were John J. Campbell, Solomon 
Wolfinger, Michael Wolfinger, and Samuel Dilgard. A fine hall valued at 
three thousand dollars is owned by this association. 



19 

Prosperity Loge, No. 567, Free and Accepted Masons, was instituted Sep- 
tember 4, 1886, with Edward W. Lerch, W. M. ; Dr. Alexander S. Jordan, 
S. W. ; Dr. Newton S. Rice, J. W. ; and nine other charter members. The war- 
rant for its organization was granted July 16, 1886. 

The village of Monroe is situated at the mouth of Rodger's run, about two 
miles below Riegelsville, and is embraced within the boundaries of plot No. 13 
of the Durham lands. This embraced one hundred and seventy-six acres, and 
came into the possession of Thomas Purcell some time prior to 1780. He first 
erected a log-cabin ; then a saw-mill, the first in this region, and afterward 
excavated a large mill-pond, and also built a second mill. He established a 
ferry in 1785, which at once became an important thoroughfare from Sussex, 
in Jersey, to Philadelphia. He opened a road from the ferry to the Durham 
road by way of Gallows run, and thus increased the patronage of his mills. 
He was a man of invincible energy and remarkable sagacity. He died at 
Musconetcong, New Jersey, and is buried in a deserted graveyard near that 
place. The Monroe post-office was opened in 1832 with John H. Johnson as 
postmaster, which position he held twenty-six consecutive years. In May, 1858, 
William Bennett was appointed, and in June, 1866, Matthias Lehman super- 
seded him. In 1841, however, the name of the office had been changed to 
Durham, and in 1869 it was discontinued at Monroe, and removed to the store 
at Durham iron-works, and in 1876 (Feb. 5) it was removed to Bachman's 
store with Hon. R. K. Bachman as postmaster, where it still remains. 

Durham village is about equidistant from the Springfield and Nockamixon 
boundaries. It comprises the grist-mill of R. K. Bachman & Bro., store, post- 
office, and about ten dwellings. Postal facilities to this place have had a 
checkered history. It is said that the furnace managers established a mail 
service at an early date. Richard Backhouse was the first proprietor who re- 
duced this to a system, and about the time of his death (1792) the first United 
States postal law was passed. James Backhouse, 1798-1805 ; George Heft, 
1805-1813 ; Dennis ReiUy, 1813-1818 ; Nathan Reilly, 1818-1825 ; ^Thomas 
Long, 1825-1836, were successively landlord or storekeeper, and as such post- 
master. The office was discontinued in 1836, and in 1876 the Monroe post-office 
was removed to Durham, Avhen R. K. Bachman became postmaster as above 
described. He was nominated for congress several years afterward, and 
Edward Lerch succeeded him. 

Durham schools compare favorably with those in other sections of the 
county. The first school-house in this section of the county was the " Old 
Durham Furnace school," built in 1727. It was a small log-house on the east 
side of the road leading from Easton to Philadelphia, about one hundred yards 
north from Durham creek. The only teachers of whom any record exists 
were James Backhouse, whose proficiency in mathematics was extraordinary ; 
John Ross, subsequently a judge of the supreme court of Pennsylvania ; 



20 

Thomas McKeen, afterward president of the Easton National Bank ; and Rich- 
ard H. Ilorner, who taught in 1784 at a salary of seven shillings sixpence 
per day. The singing school was an important adjunct under his administra- 
tion. This school-house, the educational pioneer of northeastern Bucks county, 
was demolished in 1792. The Laubach school has probably influenced the 
farming community more than any other in the township. Among the teachers 
here were Jacob Lewis in 1813 ; Dr. Drake, a man of great scientific acquire- 
ments, in 1815 ; Michael Fackenthall, a proficient surveyor, in 1817 ; James 
Rittenhouse, a relative of the great mathematician, in 1822 ; and l\lr. Stryker, 
a rigid disciplinarian, in 1833. The first school-house in the Rufe district was 
of logs, built in 1802. The ground necessary for its erection was donated by 
Samuel Eichline. In 1861 the old house was burned and the present stone 
building erected. Among those who have taught here were Dr. Joseph 
Thomas and Hon. C. E, Hindenach. 

The new Furnace school-house was built about 1855, and destroyed by fire 
in 1876. A graded school built on land donated by Cooper & Hewitt was 
opened in February, 1877, with N. S. Rice principal, and C. W. Fancher 
assistant. The McKean Long school-house, a typical structure of the olden 
time, was built in 1802 to accommodate those families who were not convenient 
to Rufe's or Daubach's. It is a long, low, stone building and many of the 
older residents of the township point to it with just pride as the place where 
the foundation of their future usefulness was laid. The first school-house in the 
Monroe district, a small frame building, was erected in 1838 upon ground donated 
by George Trauger. The more pretentious structure in use at the present was 
built in 1865. Among those who have taught here were Dr. S. S. Bachman, 
John Black, Reverends L. C. Sheip and C. H. Melchor, Dr. B. N. Bethel, 
Dr. C. D. Fretz, and D. R. Williamson. The Durham Church school-house 
was built in 1844 upon ground donated by John Knecht, Sr. Jacob Nickum 
was the first teacher ; Aaron S. Christine and Carrie Fackenthall were 
among his successors. The present school-house is a commodious building, and 
compares favorably with any other in the county. The first school-house in 
Riegelsville was built in 1846 and opened with Dr. R. Kressler as teacher. 
G. F. Hess, H. H. Hough, Rebecca Smith, and David W. Hess were 
among its teachers. August 3, 1857, C. W. Fancher opened an academy in 
the Presbyterian church. D, R. Williamson took charge September 1, 1869; 
Dr. George N. Best, September 13, 1871 ; John Frace, September 30, 1872 ; 
but for want of support the project was abandoned. After a suspension of ten 
years the effort to establish a school of advanced standing was renewed. 
Through the efforts of John L. Riegel, Esq., Professor B. F. Sandt, a former 
student of Lafayette college, was induced to open an academy. It has out- 
grown the accommodations at first provided, and since September 3, 1886, has 
been conducted in a large stone building erected mainly through the munifi- 



21 

cence of Mr. John L. Rie<^el and deeded in trust for educational purposes to 
the trustees of St. John's Reformed church in tiie United States. A circula 
ting library is one of its most valuable features. The institution reflects credit 
upon its projectors and cannot fail to exert a favorable influence upon the social 
and intellectual life of the community. 

The earliest account of any religious services being held in this township 
places it in 1728 at the school-house connected with the iron-works. The 
Presbytery of New Brunswick sent supplies to Durham in 1721. The Durham 
Presbyterian congregation was fully organized in 1742, and supplied from 
different Presbyteries, principally the one above mentioned. There was a con- 
siderable influx of Germans from Easton, and in 1790 a German Presbyterian 
congregation was organized and services held in a log barn belonging to George 
Henry Knight, about five hundred yards west from Durham church. Reverend 
John Jacob Hoffmeyer preached here in 1794 to 180G. German services were 
also held in the log school-house, popularly known as Laubach's by preachers 
from Easton. The religious complexion of those who worshipped at this latter 
place was principally Reformed and Lutheran. In 1812 these three congrega- 
tions united in purchasing land from William Long, and appointed John Jacoby, 
Michael Zearfoos, Morgan Long, Anthony Trauso, John Boyer, Jacob Uhler, 
and Jesse Cawley trustees for the erection of a church building, which was 
completed in 1813. The altar was three feet high and three feet square, 
surrounded by a railing of equal height, twelve feet square. The deacons 
passed long poles with black velvet bags at the ends to receive contribu- 
tions. There were three doorways, and an ec^ual number of stairways 
ascending into the galleries. This church is said to have been exceedingly 
uncomfortable in cold weather. It was replaced in 1857-58 by the Durham 
Union church of the present, one of the most beautiful edifices in the county. 
From a distance only the white spire is visible above the surrounding trees. 
The following Presbyterian pastors have officiated here: Stephen Boyer, Bishop 
John Gray, Joseph McCool, 1833 ; Joseph Worrel, 1836 ; John W. Yeomans, 
D.D., 1843 ; Charles Nassau, D.D., 1844 ; John Carrol, 1849-53 ; William C. 
Cattell, D.D., LL.D., 1856-00; John L. Grant, 18(30-65; and G. W. Achen- 
baugh, D.D., 1866-67. The numerical strength of the Presbyterian congrega 
tion has declined steadily since 1843. A Presbyterian church was built at 
Riegelsville in 1849. This was subsequently sold by order of the county court, 
and the congregation disbanded. And thus, after a checkered experience of one 
hundred and thirty years, all efforts to maintain Presbyterian services in Durham 
have finally been relincjuished. The first German Reformed pastor was Reve- 
rend Samuel Stahr, who preached at the Union church from 1812 to his death 
in 1843, when he was buried in the graveyard adjoining. He was succeeded 
the following year by Reverend W. T. Gerhard, who introduced English preach- 
ing. The present pastor. Reverend D. Rothrock, succeeded him in 1859. The 



22 

first Lutheran pastor was Reverend John Nicholas Mensch, who preached from 
1811 to 1823, and was succeeded by the following: 1823-1838, Henry S. 
Miller; 1838-1842, C. F. Welden ; 1842-65, C. P. Miller; 1865-79, W. S. 
Emery ; 1879, 0. H. Melchor. Upon his accession the congregation severed 
its connection with the Ministerium of Pennsylvania, and united with the gen- 
eral synod of the Lutheran church. 

The Lutheran church of Riegelsville was organized in 1850 by Reverend 
John McCron, D.D., then pastor at St. James' church, near Phillipsburg, N.J. 
His pastorate continued but a few months. Rev. J. R. Wilcox was pastor from 
1851 to 1860 ; Rev. C. L. Keedy, in 1862 ; Rev. Nathan Yeager, in 1863 ; 
Rev. Theophilus Heilig, in 1864-76 ; and Rev. D. T. Koser, 1877 to 1887 ; 
Rev. C. L. Hech is the present pastor. The church building was erected as a 
Union house of worship in 1851. Believing that the only ground upon which 
the divided state of the Christian church can be justified is that each denomina- 
tion has its peculiar and individual work,, an amicable division of this property 
was effected in 1871, by which the Lutherans became its exclusive owners. 
July 7, 1872, the corner-stone of a new Reformed church was laid with impres- 
sive ceremonies. The church is substantially built of brown stone, and is 
beautifully frescoed. This congregation was organized by Reverend John H. 
A. Bomberger, D.D., LL.D., December 21, 1851. Dr. Bomberger was then 
pastor at Easton. He was succeeded in 1854 by Reverend Thomas G. Apple, 
D.D., LL.D. ; in 1856, by Rev. William Phillips ; in 1862, by Rev. George 
W. Achenbaugh, D.D., LL.D. ; in 1873, by Rev. R. Leighton Gerhart ; in 
1879, by Rev. J. Calvin Leinbach ; and Rev. B. B. Ferer, the present incum- 
bent, preached here for the first time, October 31, 1884. The membership 
now numbers 250, and owns much valuable and substantial church property as 
before mentioned. It holds in trust the academy building and teachers' resi- 
dence for educational purposes, besides possessing a commodious stone parson- 
age and a comfortable sexton's house. The congregation has also received an 
endowment of $5000, which is to draw perpetually an annual interest of six per 
cent, from Mr. John L. Riegel. It is also a fact worthy of note that three of 
these Reformed pastors subsequently became college presidents, and two of the 
Lutheran pastors became principals of leading ladies' seminaries in the country. 

The Roman Catholic persuasion has been represented by its membership 
from an indefinite period, but no public religious service was held until 1849, 
when Father Reardon, of Easton, celebrated mass in private houses. He was 
the first priest to oflSciate at Durham. The following clergymen have suc- 
ceeded him : Wachter, Newfield, Koppernagel, Laughran, Marsterstech, 
Stommel, Walsh, and Krake. A chapel was erected in 1872 near the furnace 
on property donated by the furnace company, during Reverend Stommel's 
incumbency. 

Methodist Episcopal services were held in houses along the Rattlesnake as 



23 

early as 1850, but it was not until I860 that a degree of regularity was 
observed. Reverend Robert C. Wood was pastor during part of this time. 
When the new building for a graded school in the Furnace district was built in 
1872, one of the old school-houses comparatively new was purchased by the 
congregation, and after undergoing alterations it was dedicated as a place of 
worship, J. Bowden being pastor at that time. Services have been conducted 
regularly since then. The original Methodist population was small, but it has 
been increased in recent years by the arrival of English people, mostly miners 
from Cornwall, of that denomination. The society is in a flourishing condition. 



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